Allergy is a chronic inflammatory disease that encompasses a broad range of manifestations including allergic rhinitis (AR), eczema, and asthma. It has been approximated that up to 25% (75 million) of the US population suffers from some form of allergy. In fact, seasonal AR is estimated to affect 25% of the Caucasian race of which 40% are children. The prevalence of asthma is estimated to be 9% (27 million people) in the USA. Food allergies are on the rise and are particularly dangerous in young children as they have a propensity to develop into life threatening conditions, such as anaphylactic shock.
60 million Americans suffer from AR in the US. AR is characterized by nasal congestion, rhinorrhea (runny nose), sneezing, and nasal and eye itchiness. AR can be classified as a nuisance condition but it is associated with significant morbidity that often results in a reduced quality of life, emotional well-being and productivity. Most of the reduction in the quality of life can be attributed to sleep disturbances. The burden is heavy on children as 88% of pediatric patients with AR have difficulty sleeping.
In fact, AR in particular, places a considerable economic burden on the US health care system which includes direct costs to both patients and insurance providers and indirect costs such as absenteeism and presenteeism. Further, children with AR are more likely to have increased visits to their physicians further increasing the cost of health care.